Cattle-guard for railway-tracks.



H. MARSHALL. CATTLE GUARD FOR RAILWAY TRACKS.

m 9 \W 5 1 W 00 8 Wm m um 0 d2 APPLICATION FILED MAY 3, 1909.

H. MARSHALL. CATTLE GUARD FOR RAILWAY TRACKS.

APPLICATION FILED MAYS, 1909.

Patented July 13, 1909.

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CATTLE-GUARD FOR RAILWAY-TRACKS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 13, 1909.

Application filed May 3, 1909. Serial No. 493,819.

T 0 at! whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, lionm: MAnsuALL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Gamaliel, in the county of Monroe and St ate of Kentucky, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Cattle-Uuards for ailway-Tracks; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to a cattle guard for railway tracks, and has for its object a guard of this character, which is normally maintained in elevated position across the track, and which is operable by the wheels of a passing train.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts, as will be more fully described and particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings: Figure 1, is a side elevation of the guard applied to a section of the track, with the guard members in raised position. Fig. 2, is a top plan view with the guards lowered. Fig. 3, is a central longitudinal section with the guard members' down. Fig. at, is a transverse section taken on the line 4.- l of Fig. 2, and, Fig. 5, is a detail transverse section taken on the line 5 5 of Fig. 2, and Fig. (3, is a detail sectional view taken through the bottoms of the guard members.

In the embodiment illustrated, 1, indicates the bed plate for the track rails and 2 the track rails, which in the present instance are recessed centrally and longitudinally as at 3, for the reception of the longitudinal pivoted guard operating bars l. The central portion of the bed plate is mounted upon a base 5, which is suitably slotted as at (3, for the reception of the guard members 7 and 8, respectively. Each of these members comprises an upper cross piece 9, to which are connected the inner or free ends of its operating bars l. Each guard member also comprises a plurality of vertical slats 10, having their lower ends hinged, as at 11 and 12, to the lower cross piece 13, the ends of which are slidably mounted in recesses or grooves 14., formed in the end pieces 15, of a suitable boxing 16, which extends into the ground beneath the base 5. The guard members 7 as shown, are provided with a Y greater number of slats than the other guard member 5, but this, of course, is a mere matter of choice, and has nothing to do with the present iinention. The rails are recessed as at 17, to provide for the reception of the upper cross pieces of the guard members when the latter are in a lowered position, but in order to prevent a space from being left in the guard members when they are in lowered position, the upper cross pieces thereof are provided on opposite sides of the operating bars -l-, with the blocks 18, which fit in the recessed portions of the rails and form a continuation thereof when the guard members are in lowered position. The opposite ends of the upper cross pieces of the guard members lit in downwardly tapering slots 20 formed in the inner faces of the upright. frame pieces 21. 'lhese slots or recesses are necessarily made tapering for the reason that as the guard members are raised, the upper cross pieces thereof move farther apart. The guard members are normally held in raised position by the coil springs 22, which are suspended from the top piece 2st, and are connected with the upper cross piece of the guard member 7, by the screw eyes 25.

In the operation of the device, when the train approaches the wheels coming into engagement with the operating bars t, dopress the latter into the grooved or recessed portions of the rails and cause the guard members to be lowered against the action of the coil spring. As soon as the train passes over both sets of operating bars, the guard members are immediately raised or returned to normal position by the coil springs.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, the construction and operation of the invention will be readily understood with out requiring a more extended explanation.

Various changes in the form, proportion and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the principle or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention, as defined in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A cattle guard of the class described, comprising a vertical frame, a pair of individual guard members having their upper cross pieces mounted in the sides of the frame, coil springs suspended by the top piece of the frame to normally hold the guard members in elevated position, and a pair of longitudinal operating bars having their inner ends secured to each of the individual guard members.

2. In a device of the class described, a boxing having vertical recesses formed in its end pieces, an operating frame having downwardly tapering slots formed in its side pieces, a pair of guard members having a lower cross piece common to both, and individual upper cross pieces, each of said guard members also comprising a series of vertical slats hinged to the lower cross piece and connected to its upper cross piece, and said guard members being arranged in position with the ends of the lower cross piece fitting in the recesses in the ends of the casings, and with the ends of their upper cross pieces fitting in the tapering recesses of the side pieces of the frame, coil springs suspended from the top piece of the frame and connected with the upper cross piece of one of the guard members to normally hold the latter in elevated position, and a pair of longitudinal pivoted operating bars having their inner ends connected to the upper cross piece of each guard member, and adapted to be operated by the wheels of a passing train.

8. In combination with a train, rail sections formed with central longitudinal grooves and having their central portions recessed or cut away, guard members mounted for vertical adjustment across the rail sections and comprising upper cross pieces adapted to fit in the recessed portion of the rails when in lowered position, resilient means to normally hold the guard members in elevated position, a pair of longitudinal operating bars pivoted at their outer ends in the grooved portions of the rail sections and having their inner ends connected to the upper cross bar of each guard member, and

bridge blocks arranged on the top faces of the upper cross pieces of the guard members on opposite sides of the operating bars and adapted to form a continuation of therail sections when the guard members are in lowered position.

In testnnony whereof I have hereunto set my hand 1n presence of two subscriblng wit- 

